Saturday, 27 September 2014

Goody Bag Swag: #bhmbloggermeet

I had to get my post out on the lovely, incredibly generous goody bags Abbigayle over at stealstylist.com out together for those who attended her brilliant #bhmbloggermeet event last weekend.

There was so much in there, it’s taken me a while to get the pictures and the post done, but we were all very grateful, so I wanted to make sure this went up as soon as possible.

I’m in awe of how much hard work she must have put in to get all this together and spoil us silly, especially as I will shortly be doing the same myself for the March event I’m organising in partnership with 48 Hours of Fashion. Abbigayle did such a good job of her event and making us all feel welcome on the day. I hope you’re ready for a bumper goody bag here. Sooo much to unpack…

So the goodie bag itself was this very chic canvas tote from River Island. Luckily, I really do *heart* them, so I’ll be using this for my shopping next time I pop in there.

Look at this sea of stuff that was inside. My goodness. Us bloggers were like kids in a candy shop looking through them. I tried to be good and not open any of the packaging until I’d got home to shoot it for you, but it proved impossible!

First up…gift vouchers! First of all, Bratandsuzie.com, which is a very cool company who look like they produce some amazing graphics on sweatshirts and tees.

I pretty much need this ‘Clever Kitty’ boyfriend tee, so I will be treating myself with the voucher they gave.

There was also the chance of a free Blogger redesign from Fashion and Beauty Tribes. The timing is great as I’d been thinking about shifting up the layout here. What do you think? Time for a new look?

There was also a discount voucher from BlackTied, whose cool jewellery pieces I already love- the rough-cut quartz stuff is right up my alley. So it looks like there could be a few treats coming soon.

Next up, an amazing gift from Nanshy. One of their blending brushes! I’ve already heard a lot about these from the lovely Kerry, who has a review of their range live that you can see here.

This brush feels soooo soft and lovely, and I really like the white pearl paint finish on the handles. Check out the gorgeous white satin pouch it comes in as well. This brush will be super-useful for me, and I’m looking forward to discovering more about this new brand.

Then we had some treats from Bee Good. All their product are made from natural British honey. Two things – first of all, I’m a straight-up freak for anything that smells of honey. Just love it. Second, if you don’t know how vital protecting bees is to the UK ecosystem – read up here. So this company, especially with their lovely packaging, was always going to be a winner for me.

It sinks in tracelessly, so its ideal for sore, weather beaten lips or as a prep for lipstick. The tube is so cute, I popped it in my handbag straight away.

Then we got a full size of the Honey and Crambe Daily Hand Cream. Its approaching cold weather season, when I burn through handcream even quicker than usual , so this was a very welcome gift.

This little beauty is jammed with active ingredients - moisturising British wild flower honey, propolis (which has antibacterial properties as well, helping you to fight dreaded flu germs), skin-softening panthenol, antioxidant vitamin E and Crambe, borage and camelina oils to soothe, strengthen and protect the skin. I can’t wait to use this.

The company’s range is all made from Hampshire beeswax, honey and propolis and is utterly gorgeous. They also do a cream cleanser with a muslin cloth that I’m keen to try. What a great brand to discover.

The next pressie was this handmade Earl Grey Tea soap from Lovely Lotions. It smells very delicate, subtle and rich – the perfect base note for any smoky winter scents. I do love my tea rituals, so the thought of bringing it into my skin routine is very interesting – but I might have to fight Seb for this as he loved the scent of it as well.

Harlequin Cosmetics also gifted us their XOXO handmade soap and a mini pot of hand cream as well. It’s a family-run business, and all the soaps are vegetable glycerine based, cruelty-free and don’t have parabens in. Instead, there’s jojoba oil and rich avocado oil which softens and also reduces scars and blemishes on the skin. The soap smells of bubblegum as well, so its an instant win!

We also got these lovely little perfumes from Colour Me Fragrance, very handy for popping into a clutch bag for an evening out. These are Pink and Diamond- both girly, sweet scents. Pink has notes of white rose, almond blossom, geranium, heliotrope, lillies and vanilla - gorgeous!

We also got a bumper gift from Lush. Could this be the start of a love affair? I’ve never really gotten on with Lush before. I must admit I’m not keen on the fact their products go off over time, I can never use them fast enough, and the shops give me a headache as they smell so overwhelming, so I’ve never really bought anything from them, even though I know other people love them. I do like their stuff when I come across it, so perhaps I’ll get hooked on one of these products?

There are little pots of their 'Sesame Suntan Lotion' – which I love the smell of, much better than the usual coconut. There was also their ‘Formulae Known As’, which is a hand and body lotion with cocoa butter, almond oil and geranium. This smells amazing – chocolately and floral all at once.

Then there was a pot of the ‘Kalamazoo’ face wash. This bills itself as ‘for beards’ but don’t worry, us ladies can use it too, bearded or not! Its packed full of pineapple enzymes to blast away embedded dirt, while jojoba oil and cupuacu butter leave skin delightfully silky.

I loved the way my skin felt after using this, and I have let Seb try some too. We’re both impressed.

Lush also included their Tea Tree Water, which I really like. Its particularly lovely if you have problem skin, as the formula is antibacterical, antifungal and antimicrobial – so it will really fight spot-causing impurities, Vitamin rich grapefruit, and juniper berry (did someone say gin and tonic?) also keep skin refreshed, super-clean and tingling.

This would be an amazing thing to take on a sweaty summer holiday.

Finally, there was also a Sultana of Soap included. At first, I thought the scent of this was far too spicy for me, but its actually really grown on me, to the point where I keep taking it out of the bag to have a sniff! Packed with crushed fruits like apricots, cranberries and currants, this also contains olibanum oil, which is supposed to be amazing for keeping skin replenished. There’s also a splash of bergamot oil, a scent I’ve always found really uplifting.

This could be what converts me to Lush for keeps – its so incredibly buttery and silky, I can see why people would rave about it. I’ve never been a fan of bars of soap as I find them messy but this is good enough to ignore the mess for!

I had to show you the amazing organiser Abbigayle did for us too. She sells templates etc via her blog, so do pop over to her etsy store or stealstylist.com if you want some of these. If you’ve seen her amazing planner pages, you’ll know what to expect!

I’m including a selection of shots showing the beautiful pages inside – this is going to be so useful to help get my posts a bit better organised.

There was also this too-cute little jar. You fill it with goals for your blog, pull one out each week and try your hardest to make it real! This is a really great way to approach the vague wish most of us have to make our blogs ‘better’ – break it down into steps and it becomes far more achievable.

Then, Dottie Rocks gifted us these amazing signs and cute little polka dot pencils. If you love stationary, like I do, you’ll love them! It may not be back to school for me, but I still get those new pencil case thrills!

We all got different signs, but I am obsessed with Coco Chanel, so this seemed perfect for me. I’m planning to frame it, and its going to take pride of place in the dressing room we’re building in my new house. I promise I’ll post to show you when its in situ!

We also got some lovely, very individual jewellery items from Lylia Rose. This amazing necklace with the bright neon gems, completely my style, you know I love me a statement necklace - this will be perfect for brightening up my monochrome winter look.

There was also this delicious chunky turquoise pendant. Wouldn’t that look great with a tunic, knee high boots and one of those floppy 70s felt hats?

And this cute little bracelet with an Eiffel Tower charm.

Phew! We were spoilt rotten, so massive thanks to Abbigayle for being such a generous host. It was such a brilliant day - you can read about what we got up to here, and all about the outfit and make-up essentials here.